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A study sought to explore and define the nature of gendered religious socialization in a non-denominational Christian school, using the lens of submission theology. Many Christian schools today are less rigid in their rules and doctrines than formerly and are no longer separate from the world. This study was conducted in one such school, where a lack of doctrinal absolutes became important to understanding the way gender is played out in this school. Central to understanding this study is the concept, known as submission theology, that the wife has less authority (specifically spiritual) than her husband. Data are drawn from a case study that included visits to an evangelical Christian school with an enrollment of 150, pre-K through grade 12 students. Most students and faculty have conservative Christian beliefs with more Pentecostal/Charismatic tendencies. Drawing heavily from transcriptions of student/teacher interviews, the issue of the submission of women among the students became a central theme. Issues of submission were found in their discourses regarding leadership, in the teasing and interactions among students and between students and faculty, and by the example set through lack of doctrinal absolutes and the favoritism shown by faculty toward males. This school provides a unique opportunity to see a fragment of the intersection of religion and gender. (Contains 32 references.) (BT)

Research has examined how gender stereotypes and sexism in picture books affect the development of gender identity in young children, how children's books in the last decade have portrayed gender, and how researchers evaluate picture books for misrepresentations of gender. A review of the research indicated that gender development is a critical part of the earliest and most important learning experiences of a young child. Picture books provide role models for children in defining standards for feminine and masculine behavior; gender stereotypes and sexism limit children's potential growth and development; non-sexist books can produce positive changes in self-concept, attitudes, and behavior; and picture books in the last decade have shown some improvement in reducing stereotypes, but subtle stereotypes still exist. Recommendations include: teachers, parents, and care-givers need to be critical in evaluating books they plan to share with young children; teachers and parents need to become familiar with criteria for evaluating books; teachers need to be critical in selecting multicultural literature; more minorities, particularly authors of Mexican American and African American ethnicity, need to write fiction for young children that authenticate their heritage; universities need to train teachers to be aware of the use of male-dominated language and the positive benefits of using non-sexist books and classroom materials; and research on books published should continue. (Contains 21 references, appendixes contain a checklist for sexism in children's literature, and two tables and two figures of data. (RS)

Examination of textbooks for teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) reveals a hidden agenda in many: globalization of a Western-styled consumer culture. Despite attempts to make textbooks more culturally inclusive, they still reflect ethnocentrism and conformity. Both sexism and heterocentrism are overt. Concurrently, among native English speakers, postmodern, feminist, and multiculturalist theories are joining to revise how we view and speak about the world: for example, generic masculine pronouns (he, his) are now commonly viewed as masculine, not neutral. It is important to eliminate sexism in the language class. A classroom experiment illustrates how gender differences affect the learning process. Students were divided into small single-gender groups to summarize an article they had read. The female groups quickly organized themselves for discussion and stayed on task, while most male groups functioned only minimally on task. Research also shows other gender differences in classroom interaction. To change sexist patterns of classroom interaction, language teachers can: ask more open-ended questions to females; allow more time for response; use exercises that develop active listening skills, productive/non-confrontational communication skills, and facilitative questioning; and promote student awareness of sexism in textbooks. Eighteen classroom activities are appended. Contains 20 references. (MSE)

Over the years the Supreme Court has given academic freedom a special First Amendment status. This study reviewed a selected group of recent cases at public universities, focusing particularly on several where rulings were based either on a professor's public comments or in-class verbiage, in an attempt to assess the current status of academic freedom. Cases cited include two where professors were disciplined for views expressed outside the classroom; in both these cases the courts upheld the professors' rights of protected free speech. In two other cases where professors interjected personal religious beliefs during classroom activities, the courts ruled that the university had a responsibility to ensure a secular environment, especially in regard to curriculum. In several"hostile environment" and sexual harassment cases cited, the picture has been mixed, with the rulings usually supporting classroom speech that is germane to course content and not protecting speech that serve no academic function. The paper concludes that given the absence of educational precedents, the courts will continue to apply rulings from cases outside education (such as "Waters v. Churchill"), and suggests that academic freedom can best be protected by self-restraint and the understanding that speech at a higher level carries with it greater responsibility. (Contains 17 references.) (CH)

A study attempted to determine if exposing sixth-grade middle school students to sex-equitable literature followed by discussion would show any significant changes in gender-bias attitudes expressed by the students. Subjects, 26 sixth grade students at a suburban middle school in Middletown, New Jersey, completed a pretest to determine gender-bias attitudes of both male and female students. These sixth grade students were exposed to a series of sex-equitable reading materials in which the main character was portrayed in a non-sexist manner. These stories were followed by both discussion and written reactions to what was read. After a 6-week period, students were administered the posttest. Results showed that exposing sixth-grade students to sex-equitable literature followed by discussions does not significantly change gender-bias attitudes. However, there was some improvement, even if that improvement was statistically insignificant; had the length of this study been longer, a more significant change might have been recorded. (Contains 29 references, 3 tables of data, and 3 appendixes.) (Author/TB)

Sample components of the Comprehensive Teacher Training Programme (CTTP), a distance education program offering four academic upgrading courses to Caribbean women who are untrained elementary school teachers are presented. Though the bulk of the publication is made up of materials from these distance education courses, the opening section contains descriptions of the program's general goals, its design for easy access, its flexibility, its relevance and functionality, its teaching and learning processes, its accessibility and gender inclusiveness and simplicity, and its delivery and support system. These points suggest that the program is well designed to serve nontraditional women students. The sample materials appended include: (1) the program brochure; (2) tables of contents for mathematics modules and for the integrated science school-based assessment assignments showing program accessibility; (3) information on designing materials for and supporting busy learners to show course management flexibility; (4) graphics, reading exercises, and home science experiments showing relevance and functionality; (5) an integrated science module table of contents, introduction, summary and glossary, a module test marking sheet, and a science module; (6) data on program employee gender, sample edits of program materials highlighting sexist material, and material on identifying and correcting sexist language to demonstrate the program's accessibility, inclusiveness, and simplicity; and (7) a sample radio announcement to show the program's delivery and support system. (JB)

This study attempts to identify what mechanisms might be used to reduce gender bias in two highly inflected languages, Greek and Arabic. Twenty native speakers of Greek and Arabic attending Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., were surveyed for the experiment. The students were: (1) asked to read a standard job announcement in their native language, in which all of the nouns and pronouns referring to people were masculine, as normally would be the case; (2) asked to whom the passage was addressed (men, women, or both); (3) provided with background materials on gender bias in language; and (5) asked to complete a new job announcement using gender-neutral language. Ten students felt the original announcement was addressed to both genders, seven to men only, and three to men only or men and women. The students advocated using both the masculine and feminine form of the word with slash marks, using both endings with slash marks, substituting genderless forms, or making no changes. Five appendixes contain the job announcement, an explanation of gender-biased language, the announcement to be completed with gender-neutral elements, student attitudes concerning the original announcement, and mechanisms for reducing gender bias in Greek and Arabic. (MDM)

This study examined the complimenting behavior of men and women in the United States by collecting a corpus of 90 compliment behaviors from television programs, ethnographic observation, and the author. It also explored the relationship between sociolinguistic research and teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) in general and complimenting behavior and TESOL in specific. Results of the complimenting behavior study showed that women use compliments to each other significantly more often than they do to men or men to each other. Women also use a syntactic form that strengthens the positive force of the compliment significantly more often than men do, whereas men use a form that attenuates or hedges on compliment force significantly more often than women do. A review of six TESOL textbooks that emphasize communicative competence found that most textbook passages and dialogues focused on compliment exchanges between equals, and that most compliments concerned appearance, ability, or possessions. It was discovered that women received more compliments than men, that women gave more compliments than men, and that women of higher status received more compliments than men of higher status. A sample lesson plan on compliment behavior for TESOL classes is also included. (MDM)

This position paper argues that sex discrimination still exists in education although Title IX legislation in 1972 and other subsequent legislation prohibits sex discrimination in educational programs that receive federal funds. Greater awareness of gender issues is needed along with an understanding of strategies for change. The Fastback offers a cyclical model for eliminating gender inequity, incorporating the stages of: (1) awareness; (2) analysis; (3) action; and (4) assessment. Strategies that various key individuals and responsible groups can implement to make a positive difference for both sexes, but particularly for girls and women, are described. Research on the topic is analyzed focusing on the key concerns of: (1) low self-esteem; (2) low academic achievement; and (3) low aspirations or limited educational and career goals for a high percentage of females. Recommendations for curricular considerations and teacher education are included. (EH)

A study examined the frequency with which males and females are represented in picture books available in preschool classrooms. Three areas were examined: pronoun usage and gender of characters; the frequency of gender-neutral pronouns and characters; and written text compared to teachers' wording when reading aloud. The study involved 11 head and assistant teachers and 4 student teachers in 4 preschool classrooms in a university-affiliated child care facility. Data were collected through an examination of 129 classroom books, observation of teachers during 52 story sessions, and questionnaires to determine how the teachers chose books for the classroom and how they changed the text when reading aloud. Study findings included the following: (1) in library corner books, male characters appeared 1.8 times as frequently as females, with females comprising only 22% of the sample; (2) masculine pronouns were used as generics 3.4 times as frequently as female pronouns; (3) books read aloud by teachers demonstrated similar representations of male and female characters; and (4) questionnaire responses suggested that gender-biased language may not be a primary consideration for teachers in choosing books. The effects of books' use of predominantly masculine characters and language can be detrimental to girls' gender role socialization. Teachers can ameliorate these effects by choosing and reading books with a balance of male and female characters and by altering wording to improve this balance. (AC)

The study of women faculty and students at Canadian Universities reported in this document covered 10 areas of academic life. The study involved two questionnaires, one directed to the President's Office and/or faculty representative and one to students. Responses were received from 55 percent of the 82 President/Faculty questionnaires and 42 student questionnaires were returned from 32 institutions. Findings include the following: (1) lack of child care for faculty and students is a significant problem; (2) much remains to be done to achieve a balance of male/female perspectives and scholarship; (3) half of institutions have initiatives in place to encourage women to pursue non-traditional fields; (4) 50 percent of institutions had a gender-neutral language policy; (5) 91 percent of institutions have sexual harassment policies; (6) campus safety measures vary widely depending on various factors; (7) there is some limited acknowledgement of the differences in career paths between women and men; (8) 50 percent of students reported that they had no access to a female faculty member as a mentor; (9) only 34 percent of universities collected information on dropouts; (10) improvement has occurred in salary equity for women faculty but discrepancies are still apparent; and (11) half of respondent institutions have Affirmative Action or Employment Equity plans. Appendixes contain the questionnaire with response summaries, statement of rationale, list of participants, list of information received from universities along with their questionnaires, and a list of participating clubs and members. (JB)

There is a burgeoning body of research on gender differences in computing attitudes and behaviors. After a decade of experience, researchers from both inside and outside the field of educational computing research are raising methodological and conceptual issues which suggest that perhaps researchers have shortchanged girls and women in documenting the computer gender gap. A need is identified for more research on computing activities which are not related to mathematics or programming and which look at what women and girls do like about computers. A multi-week observational study of gender-sensitive computer attitudes in a gender-sensitive context was conducted in a suburban high school in Massachusetts during the spring of 1990, using the Personal Media Studio, Macintosh HyperCard-based multimedia writing software. This study involved 42 adolescents (25 females, 17 males), in two low-middle ability sophomore English classes. Ranging in age from 14-17, the students were racially and ethnically diverse. The results showed that females expressed positive, enthusiastic, and confident feelings about computers, and it was concluded that Likert scale computer attitude surveys are an example of the mismeasure of women. This report reviews the literature on gender differences in computing attitudes and behaviors and examines the research results in terms of: (1) methodological issues; (2) measurement instrument formats; (3) controversies regarding attitude research; (4) feminist challenges; (5) underlying assumptions about the computer; and (6) insufficient contextual details. Seven tables display the data and an extensive bibliography is provided. (ALF)